American Conference Football was back in action this weekend. Here’s the latest from the teams on the gridiron this week.
| Team | Record | This Week | Result | Up Next |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| USF | 4-0 (1-0) | at Bowling Green | W, 14-6 | vs Temple |
| FAU | 3-1 (1-0) | at ULM | W, 45-17 | vs Texas Southern |
| Tulsa | 3-1 (0-0) | at Arkansas | L, 6-34 | vs North Texas (THU) |
| Memphis | 3-1 (0-0) | — OFF — | at Charlotte | |
| UTSA | 3-1 (0-0) | vs Colorado State | W, 59-45 | at Rice |
| Army | 2-1 (1-1) | at Temple (FRI) | W, 21-17 | at Louisiana Tech |
| UAB | 2-2 (1-1) | vs Navy (FRI) | W, 24-20 | vs Samford |
| North Texas | 2-2 (0-0) | vs Houston Christian | W, 63-14 | at Tulsa (THU) |
| Tulane | 2-2 (0-0) | vs Southern Miss | W, 24-21 | — OFF — |
| ECU | 2-2 (0-0) | vs NC Central | W, 42-9 | — OFF — |
| Rice | 1-3 (0-0) | at Fresno State | L, 24-38 | vs UTSA |
| Temple | 1-3 (0-1) | vs Army (FRI) | L, 17-21 | at USF |
| Navy | 1-2 (0-2) | at UAB (FRI) | L, 20-24 | at Air Force |
| Charlotte | 0-4 (0-0) | vs Louisiana | L, 7-34 | vs Memphis |
Storylines // Standings // Preseason Poll
Mayday, Middies
The most popular pick in the preseason media poll, Navy might have already bowed out of the American Conference championship race. The Middies dropped their first conference game to Florida Atlantic in Week 3, then made a quarterback change only to lose to UAB this past weekend. While it’s certainly possible the Owls and Blazers will be better than expected, Navy is in an early hole with quarterback issues. Not great!
Other Frontrunners Escape
A swathe of the remaining cohort of conference title hopefuls didn’t lose, but even with victory, left many questions unanswered. Army, South Florida and Tulane all exited the weekend with one-score wins against teams they probably would have expected to post more convincing victories against. It’s only Week 4, but the American is shaping up to be as wide open as its been in quite some time.
UTSA is going to be fun
Good? Who knows! But the Roadrunners are certainly going to be entertaining. UTSA provided one of the more exciting contests this weekend, trading points with Colorado State until the Rams ran out of steam. Allowing 45 points on defense is concerning, but it might not matter if the Roadrunners can approach surpass a half hundred.
Looking Ahead
North Texas vs Tulsa
Tulsa finally fell back to earth a bit with a loss to Arkansas this weekend, but the Golden Hurricane remain one of the more encouraging surprises of the season so far. A matchup with a North Texas squad that can score in bunches should be an interesting test for both programs as the middle of the conference begins to sort itself out.
USF vs Temple
South Florida is the lone unbeaten left in the league and Temple is 1-3, but there’s a non-too-crazy alternative universe where the Owls are 3-1 and have an argument that they’ve played more consistent football the the Bulls. It could be nothing, but South Florida had best bring their A game next Saturday.
Rice vs UTSA
The Owls’ injured-plagued defense can’t be too excited to face the Roadrunners in their home conference opener, but Rice has given some good teams reason to worry in the first three weeks and believes they’re a better program than their 1-3 record. This could be a potential trip up spot for UTSA if Rice can get their option humming in earnest.